WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Sept. 1) – The Waynesburg University football team welcomes back an experienced core, poised to break through into the top half of the Presidents' Athletic Conference in 2025.
 
The Yellow Jackets went 4-6 to finish seventh in the league standings after being picked ninth in the PAC's preseason poll. Waynesburg notched wins over the four teams below the Jackets and defeats to the six teams above in the league standings. The conference had three teams qualify for the NCAA Playoffs and five teams that were ranked or receiving votes in D3football.com's national poll during the course of the season.
 
"As a young ball club, we learned a lot about ourselves last season," said fourth year head coach Dr. Cornelius Coleman. "We learned what we needed to work on in order to win games in this tough competitive conference. The ups and downs of last season also strengthened us as a family, and pulled us closer together in the off season."
 
Head coach Dr. Cornelius Coleman enters his fourth season at the helm of the Jackets. He led Waynesburg to convincing wins at John F. Wiley Stadium over Bethany on homecoming and Thiel on Senior Day. Waynesburg's defense keyed a victory at Saint Vincent and the Jackets scored 11 points in the final 2:31 to prevail over Allegheny in a featured matchup on KDKA+.
 
The Jackets graduated a senior class that featured multi-year starting quarterback Samuel Barber and all-conference defensive stalwarts in safety Brennan Boron and linebacker Jemuel Cypress. However, Waynesburg boasts the program's largest senior class in Coleman's tenure.
 
"It feels good to have an older ball club; for the first time, it's almost like having extra coaches on the field," said Coleman. "The upperclassmen are leading by example and taking the younger players under their wings."
 
OFFENSE
 
The Jacket offense enters the season as one of the most experienced units in the PAC. Waynesburg returns nine starters, including four former All-PAC honorees. The Jacket offense is led by first-year offensive coordinator Phil Hamilton, who joined the Waynesburg staff last fall and worked with quarterbacks and special teams.
 
"This group of men has a lot to prove, their excited about the journey and task ahead of us," said Coleman. "They are just excited to play for one another."
 
Waynesburg's offense scored 34 points or more in three of the Jackets' four wins, and scored at least three touchdowns in each of the squad's triumphs in 2024. Waynesburg excelled in paving the way for senior running back Zayne Cawley (Huntingtown, Md. / Huntingtown), the PAC's leading rusher, while also taking care of the football. The Jackets ranked among the nation's best with only 12 turnovers lost, four interceptions thrown and led the PAC with a 67.6 percent completion percentage.
 
With the graduation of Barber, a two-year starter as the Jacket signal caller, there are several capable options for Waynesburg.
 
"We have had a great competitive spring, and fall camp with our group of quarterbacks," said Coleman. "The two seniors (Burke and Getz) are leading by example, and the raising talented sophomore (Hudson) is adding a unique fare of big play ability."
 
Senior Thomas Burke III (West Leechburg, Pa. / Leechburg) has been called upon many times as a backup and spot starter for the Jackets in his career. In 16 games as a passer, he has accumulated 889 yards and eight touchdowns. Burke led the Jackets to a 37-30 win over Geneva in his first collegiate start as a freshman and engineered a fourth-quarter comeback to lead the Jackets past Bethany in 2022.
 
Senior Ashton Getz (Chesterfield, Va. / Howard) and sophomore Luke Hudson (Morgantown, W.Va. / University) also return with an opportunity to compete for the starting job.
 
At the running back spot, Cawley returns as one of the top backs in the PAC and the region for his senior season. He was the only member of the All-PAC First Team that did not play for a squad that was ranked or received votes during the season and collected regional honors as a member of the All-Eastern College Athletic Conference Second Team.
 
"Zayne is not only one of the best running backs in the country (on the field), but a tremendous leader off," said Coleman. "He is a proven winner with the ability to pull men together for a common goal. He makes us better in so many ways."
 
Cawley led the PAC with 1,225 yards, the most for a Jacket running back since Robert Heller led the nation in rushing in 2007. He also topped the conference leaderboard in all-purpose yards (1,410). His 5.59 yards per rush ranked second in the league and he finished sixth in the conference with nine rushing touchdowns.
 
Cawley went over 100 yards rushing seven times and added 21 catches for 185 yards and score. He collected national attention as a member of D3football.com's Team of the Week in week seven as he torched Bethany for 239 yards and three scores in a homecoming victory. In Waynesburg's comeback win over Allegheny, Cawley totaled 262 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns.
 
Nationally, Cawley concluded the 2024 season ranked 10th in Division III in rushing yards per game, 16th in rushing yards and 19th in all-purpose yards per game. He enters the year with 2,157 career rushing yards, ranking 10th in Waynesburg football history.
 
Also returning to the Jacket backfield is junior running back Carson Shriver (Fairview, W.Va. / Clay-Battelle). Shriver was Waynesburg's second-leading rusher last fall with 177 yards and two touchdowns on 49 carries.
 
Senior Dagyn Williams (Leslie, Ark. / Marshall) returns as a multi-year starter at tight end. He caught six passes for 129 yards and two scores. He showed his speed in a 79-yard touchdown against Case Western Reserve in the season opener and reeled in a 14-yard touchdown reception in the season finale at Geneva.
 
Senior H-back Sekye Miles (Philadelphia, Pa. / Imhotep Charter) has started games in each of his first three seasons, including all 10 games last year. In addition to paving the way for Cawley, Miles caught five passes for 35 yards and a touchdown.
 
The Jacket offensive line returns four senior starters, a major strength entering 2025.
 
"Arguably, our most talented position group with a chip on their shoulder," said Coleman. "They are banding together to make us a better ball club, in hopes of maximizing our talents (both on the ground and through the air)."
 
Left tackle Jacob Brisky (Latrobe, Pa. / Greater Latrobe), left guard Isaiah Grenway (Jessup, Md. / Hammond) and right guard Dalton Scruggs (Lusby, Md. / Patuxent) are each multi-year starters along the Waynesburg offensive line. Brisky is a three-year starter and was named to the All-PAC Second Team last fall. Grenway has 19 career starts under his belt while Scruggs has 17.
 
Senior center Kory Ansell (Mt. Pleasant, Pa. / Southmoreland) returns after starting his first four games as a transfer from PennWest California before sustaining a season-ending injury last fall. Senior Patrick Barber (Brewerton, N.Y. / Paul V. Moore) returns after stepping in as the Jacket starter for the rest of the season.
 
Waynesburg has two wide receivers who collected all-conference laurels in their collegiate careers in senior Isaac Trout (Ruffs Dale, Pa. / Southmoreland) and junior Tyler Richmond (Carmichaels, Pa. / Carmichaels).
 
"Our receiving core is the most unselfish group of players we have," said Coleman. "They are willing to do whatever is needed in order to win games; they are relentless in the run game in regard to their blocking ability, and have worked tirelessly to improve upon their route running."
 
Trout is a three-year starter who has led Waynesburg in receptions in each of the last two seasons. Trout caught 41 passes for 381 yards and three touchdowns in 2024 and earned All-PAC Honorable Mention honors the year prior with a team-best 43 catches and five receiving touchdowns. Trout ranked ninth in the PAC in receptions per game last fall.
 
Richmond emerged as a big-play threat in his breakout sophomore season. He ranked third in the conference and 17th nationally with 20.64 yards per catch. He had 22 receptions for a team-high 454 yards and matched Trout with three scores. Richmond had 10 catches of at least 20 yards and turned in 100-yard games in wins over Allegheny and Thiel.
 
Also returning in the receivers room is sophomore Isaiah Fields (Cumberland, Md. / Allegany). Fields began his Waynesburg career as a running back, but transitioned to receiver and made four starts in that capacity. He notched seven catches for 86 yards and was Waynesburg's leading kick returner with 16 returns for 250 yards. Sophomore Michael Wines (Hamlin, W.Va. / Nitro) also appeared in four games last season and made his first collegiate reception against Carnegie Mellon.
 
DEFENSE
 
Waynesburg's defense enters its third season under the direction of defensive coordinator David Arnold. The unit continued in its success in generating turnovers as Waynesburg generated 16 takeaways last fall. The Jackets notched five games with multiple takeaways, including two outings with four takeaways in wins over Allegheny and Thiel.
 
"We understand that in order for us to win, we have to get better on the defensive side of the ball," said Coleman. "It has been a goal ours to play together as unit, none of those men cares who gets the credit for stops, as long as it is taking place. This spring they dedicated themselves to become closer on-and-off the field."
 
Opportunities abound for difference-makers at all three levels of the Jacket defense with the graduation of Boron, Cypress, cornerbacks Brandon Tyson and JaVionne Smith, linebacker Cameron Burrus and defensive lineman Samuel Hamilton.
 
Despite the changes, the Jackets have seven upperclassman contributors back on the defensive side of the ball.
 
Junior linebacker Kevin Willis (Donora, Pa. / Ringgold) is Waynesburg's leading returning tackler. He started seven games last fall and ranked third on the team with 47 total tackles and notched a pair of fumble recoveries. Classmate Ewing Jamison (Jefferson, Pa. / Jefferson-Morgan) notched 31 tackles and a pair of interceptions.
 
On the defensive line, seniors Sebastian Ross (Hollidaysburg, Pa. / Hollidaysburg) and Alex Paulsen (Harmony, Pa. / Seneca Valley), along with juniors Virgil Doiron (New Martinsville, W.Va. / Valley) and John Johnson III (Glen Rock, Pa. / Susquehannock) each return. Ross emerged as Waynesburg's second-leading returning tackler with 34 stops. Paulson has appeared in 39 games in his Jacket career and had 16 tackles last fall. Doiron made eight starts as a sophomore and notched 28 tackles, a sack and a blocked kick while Johnson recorded 22 tackles.
 
In the secondary, Waynesburg replaces the majority of the unit. Senior defensive back John Stewart (Lancaster, Pa. / JP McCaskey) is the most experienced returner to the Jacket secondary. Stewart played in all 10 games and recorded 24 tackles and an interception last fall.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS
 
Waynesburg returns both of its primary specialists from the 2024 season in junior placekicker Drew Pinkerton (Fayetteville, Pa. / Chambersburg) and sophomore punter Landon Bradley (Morgantown, W.Va. / Morgantown).
 
Pinkerton went 17-for-22 in extra points and converted four of five field goal attempts. He made a game-winning 32-yard field goal in the final minute at Allegheny and notched a season long of a 40-yard field goal against Thiel. As the Jackets' kickoff specialist, he averaged 51.0 yards on kickoffs with five touchbacks.
 
Bradley ranked fourth in the conference with a 33.8 yards punting average across 38 attempts and recorded 10 punts inside the opposing 20-yard line.
 
SCHEDULE
 
The format of the PAC schedule has changed in 2025. The conference features an eight-game schedule for the 11-team conference. The Jackets will not play Westminster or Case Western during the upcoming season. Waynesburg opens with a pair of nonconference games before beginning league play in week three.
 
The Jackets have a week 11 bye and have home dates in weeks one, three, five, seven and 10. Waynesburg hits the road for weeks two, four, six, eight and nine.
 
In Waynesburg's first nonconference action since 2022, the Jackets open their season at home against No. 25 John Carroll on Sept. 6 and then head to Dickinson on Sept. 13.
 
PAC conference play begins for Waynesburg on Sept. 20 at home against Hiram. Homecoming is set for Oct. 4 against Allegheny and Senior Day is scheduled for Nov. 8 against Saint Vincent. Waynesburg's remaining game at John F. Wiley Stadium is against Geneva on Oct. 18.
 
The Jackets in conference play travel to Thiel on Sept. 27, to preseason No. 23 Grove City on Oct. 11, to Washington & Jefferson on Oct. 25 and to Bethany on Nov. 1.
 
The top team in the PAC standings earns an automatic berth to the NCAA Playoff with at-large opportunities available to the conference runners-up. The PAC also has a partnership with the Opendorse Bowl Series, in which a team that is not selected to the NCAA Playoffs plays a postseason bowl game at the Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.
 
LAST WORD
 
"We are eager to take the next step in the PAC, and show individuals that Jacket football is here to stay," said Coleman. "We want to be exciting, impactful and TEAM-oriented."